T.J.'s Team USA Weekly Analysis: June 16-22

The 38th Ryder Cup will be held Oct. 1-3, 2010, at The Celtic Manor Resort in City of Newport, Wales. Each week leading up to the matches, PGA.com Interactive Producer T.J. Auclair will provide analysis of the top 20 U.S. players in the latest standings. Go to the bottom of the page to learn how the U.S. Ryder Cup team is determined.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Phil Mickelson

5,726.48700

1

1

T.J.'s Take:The U.S. Open remains a nut that Lefty can't seem to crack. Heralded as a favorite heading into Pebble Beach, the reigning Masters champ looked on pace to win an elusive Open after a stunning 5-under 66 in the second round. On the weekend, however, the world's No. 2 ranked player failed to break par with matching rounds of 2-over 73 that left him in a tie for fourth. The high finish equaled Mickelson's ninth top-10 in a U.S. Open, a major where he has been the runner-up on a frustrating five occasions. It wasn't a win, but with the points he picked up for the effort, Mickelson extended his resounding lead in the U.S. Ryder Cup points standings.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Jim Furyk

3,248.69800

2

3

T.J.'s Take:There's a new No. 2 this week. Furyk fits the bill when you talk about the prototypical U.S. Open player. He won the national championship at Olympia Fields just outside Chicago in 2003 to go along with four other top 10s. Furyk doesn't do anything flashy. He's just extremely steady and a great putter, which usually bodes well on difficult courses. On Sunday at Pebble Beach, Furyk leapfrogged loads of players, jumping from a tie for 30th at the start of the day to a tie for 16th when all was said and done thanks to an impressive even-par 71 in brutal conditions. It was Furyk's best round of the week.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Anthony Kim

3,062.34500

3

2

T.J.'s Take:Did not play.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Lucas Glover

2,892.29000

4

4

T.J.'s Take:It was difficult to know what to expect from the 2009 U.S. Open champion at Pebble Beach. This season has been an unpredictable one for Glover. With the exception of a few events, including a third-place showing at the Players Championship, Glover has had pretty much a collection of middle-of-the-road finishes. No doubt, no one was speaking of Glover as a favorite to successfully defend his title. So, what would you deem a success for a defending U.S. Open champion? Surely Glover was looking for more than simply making the cut, but he was left having to settle for a tie for 58th. The weekend was particularly brutal for the South Carolina native with rounds of 77-76.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Dustin Johnson

2,760.45800

5

8

T.J.'s Take:The good news? Johnson moved up three spots in the U.S. standings with his tie for eighth at Pebble Beach to sneak into this week's top 5 and appears to be closing in ever closer to an automatic spot. The bad news? He tied for eighth. What's wrong with that, you ask? Well, the guy won the last two regular Tour events at Pebble prior to the U.S. Open making him an earlier favorite. Secondly, he took a three-shot lead into the final round and - based on how he's owned Pebble in the recent past - only the most cynical of observers could have predicted his Sunday demise. And, as it turns out, that demise was epic. Johnson failed to break 40 on either nine, trudging his way to a crushing 11-over 82 in the final round. It was like a NASCAR wreck at Talladega. The crash happened fast too, as Johnson played his first four holes of the day in 6-over par. In the previous three rounds, he played those same four holes in a combined 3 under. It was a harsh learning experience for Johnson. While he's got to be disappointed today by his inability to close out his first major, he certainly shouldn't be discouraged for long. Johnson has shown that he has all the talent in the world and this 110th U.S. Open should prove to be the first of many majors he goes on to contend in for years to come.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Matt Kuchar

2,629.21000

6

10

T.J.'s Take:Kuchar is quickly becoming one of my favorite golfers to watch. He's truly found his comfort zone, knows himself and his game. On Sunday, that "game" was one of the best at Pebble Beach. He equaled the lowest score of the day - a 3-under 68 - to soar up the leaderboard and earn a hard-fought tie for sixth, which happened to be his first top-10 finish in a major championship. It was also Kuchar's second top-10 in as many starts and his sixth of the season. He jumped four spots in this week's standings.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Tiger Woods

2,627.70100

7

13

T.J.'s Take:Look who's back in the top 10. Say what you want about Tiger's on-course struggles this season, but he's made it abundantly clear that he's still got the game to win a major, evidenced by his tie for fourth at Pebble Beach, which matched the finish he had at the Masters. Of course, Tiger isn't looking at it that way. He left Pebble frustrated that he was unable to create any kind of a Sunday charge and instead settled for a 4-over 75, which was his worst score of the week and came a day after he blitzed the field (except for Dustin Johnson) with a 5-under 66. He moved up six spots in this week's standings.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Steve Stricker

2,572.58300

8

5

T.J.'s Take:Stricker's 2-over 73 on Sunday was his best score of the week at Pebble Beach and it led to a tie for 58th and a three-spot drop in this week's standings. Not exactly the finish you might expect from a player of Stricker's caliber, but let us not forget it was only his third tournament back after a month-and-a-half hiatus to nurse a shoulder injury. I don't think U.S. Open-type rough is necessarily the best therapy for someone recovering from a shoulder injury.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Hunter Mahan

2,509.43300

9

6

T.J.'s Take:Hunter has quickly become one of those players I'm excited to see play in majors, because I know he's going to contend. Unfortunately, I couldn't have been more wrong about his chances at Pebble Beach. Mahan has been slumping big time lately and that trend continued on the Monterey Peninsula, where he missed his third cut in as many starts with rounds of 78-74. He dropped three spots in this week's standings.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Ben Crane

2,469.88900

10

7

T.J.'s Take:In Memphis, Crane turned in his worst result in four starts, which should tell you a little something about how well the man is playing these days. His result in Memphis? A tie for 12th with bookend rounds of 67. Crane is in a nice place with his game right now and could be a factor this week at Pebble Beach. After all, he already has a win this season at a California U.S. Open course - Torrey Pines. This week, Crane jumps one spot in the standings.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Stewart Cink

2,335.631

11

9

T.J.'s Take:Ever since he won the Open Championship last July, it's been a mixed bag of results for Cink. Sometimes he plays great and records a top-10 finish. Sometimes he plays OK, makes the cut and finishes in the middle of the pack on the weekend. Other times, he just misses the cut. At the U.S. Open, it was that second scenario that played out. Cink tied for 40th and dropped two spots in this week's standings.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Ricky Barnes

2,234.51700

12

11

T.J.'s Take:The 2010 U.S. Open wasn't as magical for Ricky Barnes as it was in 2009, but his tie for 27th this time around was respectable. He started off strong with a 1-over 72, but with a 76 on Friday and a 74 on Saturday, he wasn't going to be much of a factor in the final round without an incredibly low round - something Pebble just wasn't offering up. Barnes shot a 72 on Sunday for his top-30 finish and dropped one spot in this week's standings.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Zach Johnson

2,049.87600

13

12

T.J.'s Take:Johnson is more than happy to put this U.S. Open behind him. After an opening 1-over 72, he shot rounds of 77-78-79 to tie for 77th and drop one spot in this week's standings.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Rickie Fowler

1,983.94100

14

14

T.J.'s Take:Did not play.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Jeff Overton

1,957.36900

15

15

T.J.'s Take:Did not play.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Bo Van Pelt

1,943.26100

16

16

T.J.'s Take:Van Pelt provided one of the few bright spots in an otherwise lackluster final round on Sunday, firing an amazing round of 3-under 68 to tie for 40th. It was a remarkable bounce back from Van Pelt's 11-over 82 on Saturday.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Nick Watney

1,725.54600

17

18

T.J.'s Take:Watney made the cut and moved up one spot in this week's standings, but aside from his even-par 71 in the second round, it was an ugly week. He finished at 21-over total for 76th place.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

J.B. Holmes

1,705.33100

18

17

T.J.'s Take:Did not play.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Jason Bohn

1,667.25500

19

19

T.J.'s Take:Did not play.

Player

Points

This Week

Last Week

Bill Haas

1,643.07000

20

20

T.J.'s Take:Did not play.

Team USA Qualifying Process

The United States points system will determine the top eight players for the 2010 United States Ryder Cup Team on August 15. In addition, Captain Corey Pavin selects four players on Sept. 7, 2010, to complete the United States Team. Points are based upon the following:

-- Prize money earned in the 2009 major championships (Masters, U.S. Open, British Open and PGA Championship): One point is awarded for every $1,000 earned; all U.S. players making the cut will earn points.

-- Prize money earned in 2010 "Official" events from Jan. 1 through Aug. 15: One point is awarded for every $1,000 earned, excluding the major championships, events played opposite major championships and events played opposite World Golf Championships; all U.S. players making the cut will earn points.

-- Prize money earned for the 2010 major championships: (Masters, U.S. Open, British Open, and the PGA Championship). Two points are awarded for every $1,000 earned; all U.S. players making the cut will earn points.

Prize money earned in 2010 events played opposite the major championships and opposite World Golf Championships events between Jan. 1 and the PGA Championship, Aug. 15 -- one-half point will be awarded for every $1,000 earned; all U.S. players making the cut will earn points.